79 Responses

However, I suspect they are all characters who are not seen as serious contenders by the real politicians of the National party. I suspect selection might come down to which candidate (or candidates father) makes the biggest contribution to National coffers.

As well as authoring Brash’s biography (which I haven’t read), Paul Goldsmith is also the author of the more fawning of John Banks’ two biographies. Both are imaginatively titled “<Name>: A Biography”.

Che, Banksie is incredibly interesting; one of the most interesting pollies in modern NZ history. Son of sly-grogging backroom-abortionists, a genuinely self-made man of strong moral convictions and remarkable character. Also bigoted, racist and intolerant but hey – you don’t have to be nice to be interesting.

Sorry, I should clarify – both biographies written by Paul Goldsmith are imaginatively titled “<Name>: A Biography”, not both bios of John Banks. The more critical bio of Banksie is by Noel Harrison, “Banks: Behind the Mask”.

I'm amazed at the low hurdle of notability needed for an NZ politician to get a published biography. I do wonder whether our paying almost double the overseas price for books is helping to subsidise this...

Also, the credibility of National's Epsom candidate will be borne out by their list ranking, or lack of, I suspect. We shall see.

So Craig, you mean they are actually selecting these jokers on their *merits*. That’s even more frightening.

I suspect we could run up a thoroughly non-partisan “dudes and dudettes, WTF were you thinking?” list of candidates and MPs who were hardly glittering jewels in the crown of parliamentary democracy. (I think it’s also a pretty safe bet that the National candidate would never win an Epsom straw poll of Public Address readers.) 20/20 hindsight is also a wonderful thing. In 1990, Taito Philip Field looked pretty damn meritorious on paper when he won the selection for Otara. How did that work out in the end?

Democrazy’s a bitch, but she’s our bitch. The idea that all you need to get a National nomination is a well-connected daddy and a fat chequebook is as silly as the meme that you can’t get arrested in the Labour Party unless you’re a Maori lesbian union official who gaggles with the gays.